LOS ANGELES: In disappointing news for fans, actor Simu Liu has shared that the highly-anticipated sequel to MCU's ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ could be delayed.

The Chinese-born Canadian actor plays the title role in the Marvel's hit superhero 2021 film.

Sharing an update with fans on the 'Shang-Chi' sequel, which is currently in development, he said that the sequel keeps getting pushed back “due to circumstances beyond my control”.

He was interacting with fans during an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session on his Threads account, a new social media app that launched Wednesday.

One fan asked for a status update on the sequel to ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’.

“Was told it would follow Avengers,” Liu, 34, said, adding, “But that keeps pushing back due to circumstances beyond my control.”

As per 'The Hollywood Reporter', though Liu didn’t give details on what those “circumstances” are, Disney has recently made changes to its release calendar, including pushing back ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ to May 7, 2027, while ‘Avengers: The Kang Dynasty’, which has embattled Jonathan Majors attached to the lead role, has also been pushed a year to May 1, 2026. Majors is currently facing assault charges in New York.

Several other Marvel projects have also been delayed due to the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike, including ‘Thunderbolts’ and ‘Blade’.

Liu added in his post that he hopes “to have more concrete news to share soon.”

In December 2021, it was revealed that Destin Daniel Cretton would be returning to write and direct ‘Shang-Chi 2’, as well as signing an overall deal with Marvel amid the first film’s success.

‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’, which was the first film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to feature an Asian lead and predominantly Asian cast, went on to gross $432 million worldwide once it hit theatres in September 2021.